Today’s edition of quick hits.
* The Senate is expected to vote on ending a GOP filibuster on the Webb troop-support amendment any second now. If someone could mention the final tally in comments, I’d appreciate it.
* In the latest twist in the Blackwater controversy in Iraq, two injured Iraqis, one of whom is a lawyer who was headed to the Ministry of Justice before a Blackwater guard allegedly shot him in the back, said the private security firm opened fire on civilians for no reason.
* A new rule created earlier this year says that any House member charged with a crime must be investigated by the House Ethics Committee. The first lawmaker subject to this rule will be Rep. Bob Filner (D-Calif.). The panel will review a misdemeanor charge brought against Filner last month after an alleged assault of a Dulles airport baggage employee.
* Yesterday, Director of National Intelligence Michael McConnell told the House Judiciary Committee that the FISA Court was using such restrictive standards, the NSA couldn’t spy on Iraqi insurgents that had kidnapped U.S. troops without obtaining a warrant. As it turns out, like some of McConnell’s other claims, this almost certainly isn’t true.
* LAT: “The U.S. Embassy on Tuesday banned diplomats and other civilian government employees indefinitely from traveling by land outside the heavily protected Green Zone as American and Iraqi officials debated the legal status of foreign security contractors after a weekend shooting incident here in which eight civilians were reported killed.”
* WaPo: “Maryland’s highest court yesterday upheld a 34-year-old state law banning same-sex marriage, rejecting an attempt by 19 gay men and lesbians to win the right to marry. In reversing a lower court’s decision, the divided Court of Appeals ruled that limiting marriage to a man and a woman does not discriminate against gay couples or deny them constitutional rights. Although the judges acknowledged that gay men and lesbians have been targets of discrimination, they said the prohibition on same-sex marriage promotes the state’s interest in heterosexual marriage as a means of having and protecting children.”
* Rep. Peter King (R-N.Y.): “Unfortunately, we have too many mosques in this country.” He now claims his comments were taken out of context, but there’s a YouTube clip.
* Intriguing questions surround an apparent Israeli airstrike inside Syria: “The Israeli government has made no comment about the raid on what is believed to be a nuclear installation in Syria and Israeli newspapers have been forbidden to write anything on the subject.”
* Asked if invading Iraq was a good idea, Defense Secretary Robert Gates told the NYT’s David Brooks, “I don’t know.” I don’t imagine Cheney is going to respond well to that response.
* Josh Marshall offers John McCain a much-needed lesson in constitutional law.
* No wonder Bush and Australian Prime Minister John Howard get along: Howard’s party has banned its members from listening to Al Gore’s global warming speeches.
* Fascinating study from the Center for American Progress: “Amid the most recent immigration debate on Capitol Hill, many of us for the first time met a whole new group of spokespeople arrayed against immigration. But did we really meet them — or just the face they would like the mainstream press to see? It turns out that many anti-immigrant leaders have backgrounds that should disqualify them from even participating in mainstream debate. What is sad is they manage to get the American press to quote them without ever noting their bizarre and often racist beliefs.”
* Apparently, Gen. Petraeus’ testimony hasn’t changed the political landscape at all, at least according to the latest Zogby poll.
* I figured conservatives would lash out wildly at Gen. Abizaid, but given the Freepers’ reaction, one might start to think that conservatives were anti-military or something.
* Welcome to blogging, Paul Krugman.
* The tasered college student in Florida? He’s apparently something of a gonzo journalist who has a flare for self-promotion.
* On a related note, two University of Florida police officers are on mandatory paid leave in response to the incident. The Florida Division of Law Enforcement will investigate what transpired.
* WaPo: “Polls overseas show Muslims’ views of the United States going through the floor. Even in NATO ally Turkey, the United States’ favorable rating is down to 9 percent, according to a recent Pew Research Center poll, down from 30 percent five years ago and 52 percent in 2000.”
* And finally, Bush had a hilarious discussion with an Asian journalist about his relationship with Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, with whom the president described as a close friend. It’s too long to excerpt here, but Bush apparently remembered almost nothing about Badawi, despite the president’s insistence that the two are close. Take a look.
Anything to add? Consider this an end-of-the-day open thread.